Legislation

The University respects copyright, data protection and all other relevant national or international laws and regulations regarding website content.

Members of staff with responsibility for creating and/or approving web content must be aware of the relevant legal requirements, and must also know the correct course of action in case of any challenge or dispute relating to web content. Should any issues arise they should be relayed to External Relations and/or Information Assurance Services as soon as possible.

The University has a legal, as well as moral, responsibility to ensure that all our communications adhere to appropriate legal requirements including copyright laws and the Data Protection Act.

If you are in doubt about the legality of any content you wish to upload, you should contact the Information Assurance Services.

External Relations may remove any material which it reasonably believes is in breach of these guidelines and will contact the author of this material to discuss why it was taken down and how it might be changed.

The following list highlights those areas of laws and guidelines which are of prime concern but the list is not exhaustive:

Defamation

Contempt of Court

Intellectual property and copyright laws

Competitions and Market Authority (CMA)

Trades Descriptions Act/ Sale of Goods Act

Data protection

Computer misuse

Child protection/pornography

Equal opportunities/race equalities

Disabilities discrimination

Harassment

In common with other UK higher education institutions, the University subscribes to the facilities provided by JANET. By uploading material onto any le.ac.uk website you are agreeing to adhere to JANET’s Acceptable Use Policy as well as the University’s own web guidelines.

Copyright laws apply to material on the web; therefore all content created must have the appropriate permission from the copyright owner (who may or may not be the author/photographer/artist concerned) and comply with the Copyright, Designs & Patents Act 1988. Be aware that rights for web publication often need to be negotiated separately to rights for print publication. There may be a reproduction fee for use of text or photographs. Ensure that material is credited appropriately.

When creating forms asking for personal information, content creators must bear in mind the restrictions and obligations imposed by the Data Protection Act 1988. The University has a Data Protection website, which covers the collection of personal information. Please ensure that the purpose for which the information is being collected is clearly stated/explained.